The first world cup stop here in Val D’Isere France was a wild one, to say the least. The track went from dusty and loose, to slippery to hero dirt and back to loose as the weather flipped between baking sunshine and monsoon like conditions. During qualifying the race was stopped twice for lightning and torrential rain, only to resume under blue skies and sunshine 10 minutes later. There was even a bit of hail in the mix.
As a couple of hundred riders made their way down the track over the week, the surface deteriorated into 2 minutes and 30 seconds of braking bumps. Without a tree section or rock garden in sight, it was an old school track that caught some of the younger riders off guard, and managed to shake up the podium in a big way.
The Bulldog was over the moon with his win. “I don’t know what to say, it hasn’t sunk in yet. I’ve had a smile on since I won, this smile hasn’t gone away. I’m so stoked to finally take my first world cup win. It’s been long time coming and I’ve had a few bad results this season but i’m just stoked to put it together and take the win. We might do a little burning here in France, and then wait until we get to Whistler to really celebrate and do some damage” said an elated Macdonald.
Smith wasn’t happy with how his week went, after a flat in qualifying put him back in the starting order. His race run didn’t go as planned. “I just rode slow today. I think a little combo of everything. Wrong tire choice, and I just rode slow. I stuck to mud tires and shouldn’t have. I rolled it a few times at the top and thought I was getting a flat. I didn’t really slow down but the grip wasn’t there. I didn’t go fast enough, no excuses, I just didn’t go fast. I’m looking forward to world’s in a few weeks now.”
Rachel Atherton (GBR) beat out Emmeline Ragot (FRA) once again this week for the win. Recently recovered from a head injury, Floriane Pugin (FRA) was third.
The world cup takes a break for a few weeks now for Crankworx Whistler followed by the World Championships in Austria. The final round will take place in September in Norway.
Results
Elite Women
1. Rachel Atherton (Gbr) GT Factory Racing 2:39.0
2. Emmeline Ragot (Fra) MS Mondraker Team 1.5
3. Floriane Pugin (Fra) Scott11 3.1
4. Myriam Nicole (Fra) Commencal / Riding Addiction 4.3
5. Manon Carpenter (Gbr) Madison Saracen Downhill Team 4.9
6. Emilie Siegenthaler (Sui) Scott11 8.2
7. Petra Bernhard (Aut) Alpine Commencal Austria 0:11.1
8. Sabrina Jonnier (Fra) Labyrinth Shimano Racing Team 0:12.8
9. Mio Suemasa (Jpn) 0:13.5
10. Morgane Charre (Fra) Passion Velo.Fr 0:14.4
11. Tahnee Seagrave* (Gbr) 0:18.5
12. Chloe Gallean* (Fra) Dagg-Racing 0:19.9
13. Mélanie Pugin (Fra) Team Morzine-Avoriaz / Haute-Savoie 0:20.5
14. Zarja Cernilogar (Slo) 0:21.5
15. Anita Molcik (Aut) 0:23.7
16. Fiona Ourdouillie* (Fra) 0:26.4
17. Caroline Sax (Fra) Team Lac Blanc / Solid / Batibois Alsace 0:28.1
18. Elke Rabeder (Aut) 0:29.3
19. Jana Bartova (Cze) 0:31.5
20. Harriet Rucknagel (Ger) 1:25.6
Elite Men
1. Brook Macdonald (Nzl) MS Mondraker Team 2:19.5
2. Gee Atherton (Gbr) GT Factory Racing 0.5
3. Josh Bryceland (Gbr) Santa Cruz Syndicate 0.7
4. Greg Minnaar (RSA) Santa Cruz Syndicate 0.9
5. Aaron Gwin (USA) Trek World Racing 1.4
6. Michael Hannah (Aus) Hutchinson United Ride 1.9
7. Marc Beaumont (Gbr) GT Factory Racing 2.1
8. Cameron Cole (Nzl) Lapierre International 2.3
9. Rémi Thirion (Fra) Labyrinth Shimano Racing Team 2.5
10. Andrew Neethling (RSA) Giant Factory Off-Road Team 2.6
11. Steve Smith (Can) Devinci Global Racing 2.7
12. Steve Peat (Gbr) Santa Cruz Syndicate 3.6
13. Mitch Ropelato (USA) Monster Energy-Specialized 3.8
14. Matthew Simmonds (Gbr) Chain Reaction Cycles.Com / Nukeproof 4.1
15. Thibaut Ruffin (Fra) Commencal / Riding Addiction 4.1
16. Florent Payet (Fra) SC-Intense 4.1
17. Lorenzo Suding (Ita) Pila-BlaCK Arrows-MTB Herin School Asd 4.1
18. Samuel Blenkinsop (Nzl) Lapierre International 4.6
19. Markus Pekoll (Aut) MS Mondraker Team 5.1
20. George Brannigan (Nzl) Devinci Global Racing 5.2
21. Ruaridh Cunningham (Gbr) 5.3
22. Connor Fearon* (Aus) Kona 5.5
23. Filip Polc (Svk) 5.7
24. Aurélien Giordanengo (Fra) Topcycle By Trek 5.9
25. Mickael Pascal (Fra) CK Racing Santacruz 6.1
26. Joseph Smith (Gbr) Chain Reaction Cycles.Com / Nukeproof 6.3
27. Samuel Hill (Aus) Monster Energy-Specialized 6.5
28. Jared Graves (Aus) Yeti Fox Shox Factory Race Team 6.7
29. Bernat Guardia Pascual (Esp) 7.0
30. Harry Heath (Gbr) Unior Tools Team 7.1
31. Cyrille Kurtz (Fra) CK Racing Santacruz 7.1
32. Robin Wallner (Swe) Team Are Bikepark By W-Racing 7.2
33. Johannes Fischbach (Ger) Ghost Factory Racing Team 7.4
34. Phil Atwill* (Gbr) Madison Saracen Downhill Team 7.4
35. Pierre Charles Georges (Fra) Team Lac Blanc / Solid / Batibois Alsace 7.4
36. Ivan Oulego Moreno (Esp) 7.6
37. Luke Strobel (USA) 7.6
38. Sam Dale (Gbr) 7.6
39. Matthew Beer (Can) Intense/Fox Shox/Easton 7.7
40. Matej Charvat (Cze) 7.8
41. Ben Reid (Irl) Dirt Norco Race Team 7.9
42. Benny Strasser (Ger) 7.9
43. Francisco Pardal (Por) 8.3
44. Jono Jones* (Gbr) 8.3
45. Mitchell Delfs (Aus) Kona 8.4
46. Justin Leov (Nzl) Trek World Racing 8.5
47. Oscar Harnstrom (Swe) Pila-BlaCK Arrows-MTB Herin School Asd 8.6
48. Lewis Buchanan (Gbr) Chain Reaction Cycles.Com / Nukeproof 8.8
49. Patrick Thome (Fra) Lapierre International 9.0
50. Richard Thomas (Gbr) 9.0
51. Johann Potgieter (RSA) 9.3
52. Alexis Pujol (Fra) 0:10.1
53. Florian Arthus (Fra) XCYTT Racing 0:10.3
54. Joe Connell* (Gbr) 0:10.4
55. Fraser Mcglone* (Gbr) 0:10.4
56. Kyle Sangers (Can) 0:10.4
57. Benjamin Verrier (Fra) 0:11.1
58. Ludovic May (Sui) 0:11.2
59. Oliver Burton (Gbr) 0:11.2
60. Rudy Cabirou* (Fra) 0:11.5
61. Richard Rude Jr* (USA) Yeti Fox Shox Factory Race Team 0:11.9
62. Ziga Pandur (Slo) Unior Tools Team 0:12.1
63. Duncan Riffle (USA) Dirt Norco Race Team 0:12.1
64. Alex Bond (Gbr) Chain Reaction Cycles.Com / Nukeproof 0:12.3
65. Jérôme Crocombette (Fra) Passion Velo.Fr 0:12.4
66. David Trummer* (Aut) 0:12.7
68. Ville Ormo* (Fin) 0:14.1
69. Alexandre Fayolle* (Fra) 0:14.2
70. Damien Spagnolo (Fra) MS Mondraker Team 0:14.8
71. Romain Payet* (Fra) 0:17.0
72. Benoit Coulanges* (Fra) 0:18.3
73. Joao Gois* (Por) 0:22.6
74. Harry Molloy (Gbr) Madison Saracen Downhill Team 0:25.6
75. Bryn Atkinson (Aus) Team Norco International 0:28.5
76. Marco Milivinti (Ita) Torpado Surfing Shop 0:28.9
77. Nico Vink (Bel) Rose Vaujany Gravity MTB Team 0:40.6
78. Nick Beer (Sui) Devinci Global Racing 0:47.1
79. Marcelo Gutierrez Villegas (Col) CG Racing Brigade 1:35.6
80. Miran Vauh (Slo) 2:32.3
DNF Nejc Rutar (Slo) Unior Tools Team
DNF Isak Leivsson (Nor)
Standings after Round 6
Elite Women
1. Rachel Atherton (Gbr) GT Factory Racing 1200
2. Emmeline Ragot (Fra) MS Mondraker Team 1120
3. Myriam Nicole (Fra) Commencal / Riding Addiction 892
4. Tracey Hannah (Aus) Hutchinson United Ride 732
5. Emilie Siegenthaler (Sui) Scott11 705
6. Floriane Pugin (Fra) Scott11 500
7. Manon Carpenter (Gbr) Madison Saracen Downhill Team 425
8. Petra Bernhard (Aut) Alpine Commencal Austria 402
9. Morgane Charre (Fra) Passion Velo.Fr 381
10. Anita Molcik (Aut) 380
11. Jill Kintner (USA) Team Norco International 363
12. Sabrina Jonnier (Fra) Labyrinth Shimano Racing Team 239
13. Miriam Ruchti (Sui) SC-Intense 232
14. Mio Suemasa (Jpn) 230
15. Micayla Gatto (Can) 221
16. Miranda Miller (Can) 140
17. Tracy Moseley (Gbr) 124
18. Fionn Griffiths (Gbr) 115
19. Casey Brown (Can) 95
20. Tahnee Seagrave* (Gbr) 90
21. Céline Gros (Fra) Team Morzine-Avoriaz / Haute-Savoie 90
22. Luana Maria De Souza Oliveira (Bra) 84
23. Mélanie Pugin (Fra) Team Morzine-Avoriaz / Haute-Savoie 75
24. Harriet Rucknagel (Ger) 75
25. Caroline Sax (Fra) Team Lac Blanc / Solid / Batibois Alsace 75
26. Zarja Cernilogar (Slo) 70
27. Jacqueline Harmony (USA) 65
28. Claire Buchar (Can) 57
29. Alia Marcellini (Ita) Torpado Surfing Shop 55
30. Jessica Stone (Gbr) Unior Tools Team 50
31. Chloe Gallean* (Fra) Dagg-Racing 45
32. Martina Bruehlmann (Sui) 35
33. Sarah Newman (Gbr) 30
34. Fiona Ourdouillie* (Fra) 25
35. Gabriela Williams (Cze) CG Racing Brigade 25
36. Carina Cappellari (Sui) 20
37. Lauren Rosser (Can) 20
38. Elke Rabeder (Aut) 15
39. Tamara Maria Ulrich (Aut) 15
40. Jana Bartova (Cze) 10
41. Jaime Hill (Can) 10
42. Jaime Rees (USA) 5
Elite Men
1. Aaron Gwin (USA) Trek World Racing 1260
2. Greg Minnaar (RSA) Santa Cruz Syndicate 1000
3. Gee Atherton (Gbr) GT Factory Racing 981
4. Steve Smith (Can) Devinci Global Racing 680
5. Danny Hart (Gbr) Giant Factory Off-Road Team 650
6. Samuel Hill (Aus) Monster Energy-Specialized 627
7. Josh Bryceland (Gbr) Santa Cruz Syndicate 589
8. Brook Macdonald (Nzl) MS Mondraker Team 583
9. Michael Hannah (Aus) Hutchinson United Ride 546
10. Marc Beaumont (Gbr) GT Factory Racing 501
11. Andrew Neethling (RSA) Giant Factory Off-Road Team 480
12. Cameron Cole (Nzl) Lapierre International 477
13. Samuel Blenkinsop (Nzl) Lapierre International 442
14. Rémi Thirion (Fra) Labyrinth Shimano Racing Team 420
15. George Brannigan (Nzl) Devinci Global Racing 414
16. Matthew Simmonds (Gbr) Chain Reaction Cycles.Com / Nukeproof 391
17. Nick Beer (Sui) Devinci Global Racing 358
18. Justin Leov (Nzl) Trek World Racing 358
19. Loic Bruni* (Fra) Lapierre International 355
20. Joseph Smith (Gbr) Chain Reaction Cycles.Com / Nukeproof 337
21. Aurélien Giordanengo (Fra) Topcycle By Trek 333
22. Richard Rude Jr* (USA) Yeti Fox Shox Factory Race Team 324
23. Damien Spagnolo (Fra) MS Mondraker Team 320
24. Luke Strobel (USA) 312
25. Patrick Thome (Fra) Lapierre International 311
26. Pierre Charles Georges (Fra) Team Lac Blanc / Solid / Batibois Alsace 299
27. Mickael Pascal (Fra) CK Racing Santacruz 296
28. Thibaut Ruffin (Fra) Commencal / Riding Addiction 274
29. Mitchell Delfs (Aus) Kona 271
30. Steve Peat (Gbr) Santa Cruz Syndicate 255
31. Connor Fearon* (Aus) Kona 253
32. Markus Pekoll (Aut) MS Mondraker Team 250
33. Sam Dale (Gbr) 247
34. Jared Graves (Aus) Yeti Fox Shox Factory Race Team 246
35. Brendan Fairclough (Gbr) Scott11 245
36. Bryn Atkinson (Aus) Team Norco International 235
37. Lorenzo Suding (Ita) Pila-BlaCK Arrows-MTB Herin School Asd 232
38. Mitch Ropelato (USA) Monster Energy-Specialized 210
39. Lewis Buchanan (Gbr) Chain Reaction Cycles.Com / Nukeproof 201
40. Marcelo Gutierrez Villegas (Col) CG Racing Brigade 197
41. Florent Payet (Fra) SC-Intense 196
42. Johannes Fischbach (Ger) Ghost Factory Racing Team 192
43. Greg Williamson (Gbr) 189
44. Matthew Beer (Can) 187
45. Bernard Kerr (Gbr) 179
46. Robin Wallner (Swe) Team Are Bikepark By W-Racing 174
47. Eliot Jackson (USA) Yeti Fox Shox Factory Race Team 172
48. Joshua Button (Aus) SC-Intense 170
49. Julien Camellini (Fra) 167
50. Ben Reid (Irl) Dirt Norco Race Team 165
51. Oscar Harnstrom (Swe) Pila-BlaCK Arrows-MTB Herin School Asd 163
52. Harry Heath (Gbr) Unior Tools Team 157
53. Richard Thomas (Gbr) 151
54. Cyrille Kurtz (Fra) CK Racing Santacruz 150
55. Duncan Riffle (USA) Dirt Norco Race Team 150
56. Harry Molloy (Gbr) Madison Saracen Downhill Team 145
57. Oliver Burton (Gbr) 138
58. Kyle Sangers (Can) 125
59. Ruaridh Cunningham (Gbr) 122
60. Ziga Pandur (Slo) Unior Tools Team 122
61. Neko Mulally (USA) Trek World Racing 120
62. Nejc Rutar (Slo) Unior Tools Team 120
63. Jack Reading (Gbr) 114
64. Filip Polc (Svk) 113
65. Troy Brosnan (Aus) Monster Energy-Specialized 107
66. Jono Jones* (Gbr) 104
67. Fraser Mcglone* (Gbr) 99
68. Fabien Cousinie (Fra) Hutchinson United Ride 95
69. Francisco Pardal (Por) 94
70. Cédric Gracia (Fra) CG Racing Brigade 93
71. Bernat Guardia Pascual (Esp) 93
72. Adam Brayton (Gbr) 90
73. Benny Strasser (Ger) 89
74. Marcus Klausmann (Ger) Ghost Factory Racing Team 88
75. Austin Warren* (USA) 84
76. Johann Potgieter (RSA) 83
77. Ivan Oulego Moreno (Esp) 82
78. Alexander Kangas (Swe) 78
79. Isak Leivsson (Nor) 78
80. Phil Atwill* (Gbr) Madison Saracen Downhill Team 73
81. Matti Lehikoinen (Fin) Chain Reaction Cycles.Com / Nukeproof 67
82. Boris Tetzlaff (Aut) Alpine Commencal Austria 64
83. Alex Bond (Gbr) Chain Reaction Cycles.Com / Nukeproof 60
84. Mark Scott (Gbr) 60
85. Dan Stanbridge (Gbr) Dirt Norco Race Team 57
86. Thomas Braithwaite (Gbr) 57
87. Joe Connell* (Gbr) 56
88. Jack Moir* (Aus) 55
89. Marco Milivinti (Ita) Torpado Surfing Shop 53
90. Ludovic May (Sui) 53
91. Dean Lucas* (Aus) 48
92. Dan Atherton (Gbr) GT Factory Racing 45
93. Faustin Figaret (Fra) SC-Intense 45
94. Logan Binggeli (USA) 44
95. George Gannicott* (Gbr) 43
96. Fabien Pedemanaud (Fra) 42
97. Yoann Barelli (Fra) 42
98. Nico Vink (Bel) Rose Vaujany Gravity MTB Team 42
99. Matej Charvat (Cze) 41
100. Curtis Keene (USA) Specialized Racing-Usa Gravity 38
101. Gaetan Ruffin (Fra) Commencal / Riding Addiction 38
102. Benjamin Verrier (Fra) 36
103. Lars Vatnebryn Sandviken (Nor) 35
104. Guillaume Cauvin* (Fra) Hutchinson United Ride 35
105. Mathieu Gallean (Fra) Dagg-Racing 35
106. Miran Vauh (Slo) 34
107. Manuel Gruber (Aut) Alpine Commencal Austria 34
108. Cody Warren (USA) 33
109. Timothy Bentley (RSA) Hutchinson United Ride 33
110. Jonty Neethling (RSA) 32
111. Kevin Aiello (USA) 32
112. Niklas Wallner (Swe) Team Are Bikepark By W-Racing 31
113. Gianluca Vernassa* (Ita) Devinci Global Racing 30
114. Ralph Jones (Gbr) 30
115. Rob Fraser (Can) 30
116. Alexis Pujol (Fra) 29
117. Joe Barnes (Gbr) 29
118. Dennis Dertell (Swe) Team 23 Degrees 28
119. Florian Arthus (Fra) XCYTT Racing 28
120. Emanuel Pombo (Por) 28
121. Stefan Garlicki (RSA) 27
122. Kieran Bennett (Nzl) 26
123. Charly Di Pasquale (Fra) XCYTT Racing 23
124. Lars Peyer (Sui) SC-Intense 22
125. Remi Gauvin (Can) 22
126. Scott Mears (Gbr) 22
127. Rudy Cabirou* (Fra) 21
128. Thomas Jeandin (Sui) 18
129. Carlo Caire* (Ita) Argentina Bike Gravity Team 17
130. Fergus Lamb (Gbr) 16
131. Jérôme Crocombette (Fra) Passion Velo.Fr 16
132. David Trummer* (Aut) 15
133. Kazuki Shimizu (Jpn) 14
134. Arthur Parret (Fra) Passion Velo.Fr 14
135. Ville Ormo* (Fin) 13
136. Emyr Davies (Gbr) 12
137. Alexandre Fayolle* (Fra) 12
138. Junya Nagata (Jpn) 11
139. Edgar Carballo Gonzalez (Esp) 11
140. Tommy Herrmann (Ger) 11
141. Matthias Stonig (Aut) 10
142. Romain Payet* (Fra) 10
143. Mark Wallace* (Can) 9
144. Benoit Coulanges* (Fra) 9
145. Lutz Weber (Sui) 8
146. Joao Gois* (Por) 8
147. Mathias Haas (Aut) Alpine Commencal Austria 7
148. Tiaan Odendaal* (RSA) 7
149. Benjamin Torrano (Fra) 7
150. Yuki Kushima (Jpn) 4
151. Dan Sheridan* (Irl) 3
152. Hans Lambert (Can) 3
153. Kristoffer Haugland (Nor) 2